Welcome to Talk Heathen where we have the poetic Lloyd Evans joined by Johnny P. Angel, who actually is not an angel, but rather a legend. This power combo tackles calls with tact and respect!

First up is Briar from CO who wants to emphasize how important it is to keep talking about religion and what it takes to get help when leaving a religion. This was especially important for her when she left the JW and she heard Lloyd talk about getting professional help after being in a cult.

Next is Jack from PA who is having a hard time with his grandfather, a JW, that turned his back on the family who are not JW. This is because they need to protect their righteousness from anyone who is not a JW. That is how doomsday this organization is. You could say there is an element of cowardice, but it is more likely to be cognitive dissonance. If he were to engage in too much conversation with family who are not JW, his faith might unravel.

Setuf in Spain has a question about slavery. She would like to know if slavery can ever be moral. Her belief is that slavery is utterly immoral and should be forbidden. We agree and mention the Bible has specific slavery instructions. Setuf would also like to know if doing things to fetuses without their consent is like slavery. We can’t recommend anything because we are a non-profit. Abortion is a political question and this is not a political show. We would like to recommend 4 Months, 3 Weeks, and 2 Days which is a Romanian film about the topic.

Zealous in MO, a first time caller has some thoughts about the etymology of religion. His position is that atheism is a religion because of the etymology. Etymology tells you how a word developed; it does not tell you what the word means. If we play a lot of Call of Duty, we do not belong to the Call of Duty Religion. Can we separate “fan” from “religion” devotee? How is the rejection of religion a religion? How is not collecting stamps a hobby?

Alex from Australia presents that there is a quantum order behind abstract paintings and theories. He states that science has proven that mathematics is the way the universe is and holds a belief in a nameless god. This position seems more like deism than theism. Traumatic experiences as a child led Alex to believe these experiences were divine interventions and that the pineal gland did not evolve, but was placed where it is. When you talk about order without religion, that is deism. Here is the problem with divine intervention: Why does god allow millions of people to suffer and die while intervening in another’s life? Do we want to worship a god with dreadful prioritization skills? How does having order behind things prove a god?

Thank you for tuning in and remember, if you do believe we do not hate you, we are just not convinced. We look forward to future conversations that will continue to be plowed.